Dr. Stephanie Carlson, Ph.D.

Greetings visitor! My name is Stephanie Carlson. I've been a professor at Bethel since August of 1997. Before that, I earned my master's and doctorate in Psychology at Northern Illinois University (www.niu.edu) and my bachelor's degree in Psychology at Olivet Nazarene University(www.olivet.edu). I'm not the kind of psychologist that people tell their problems to. I'm trained as a scientist in the area of Psychology called Behavioral Neuroscience. I've studied the brain and how the structure and chemistry of the brain is involved with behavior. I teach the following classes at Bethel:

• Biological Psychology
• Research Methods I & II
• Psychopharmacology
• Stress and Health Psychology
• Introduction to Psychology

I also supervise Bethel students at 'The Pet Refuge', a volunteer-based, no-kill animal shelter in Mishawaka (www.petrefuge.com). The students train the dogs in basic obedience. Our idea is that well-behaved dogs will be more likely to be adopted and stay adopted once in a home. A few of the dogs have specific phobias that we help them overcome. Some students train the dogs as their psychology fieldwork, other just do it for a fun break from regular classes. This is Erin Kirk (Bethel Student), one of my trainers, working with Chance.

In May of 2006, I married Greg Shearon, a city planner for the City of Mishawaka, IN. He is a talented pianist and singer and an amazingly supportive man. What a lucky lady I am to be serenaded on a regular basis! Here is one of our wedding photos taken by Bruce Weeks (weeksb@bethelcollege.edu)a local photography professor.

One of the things that Greg is most supportive of is my volunteer work at The Pet Refuge. We have a foster dog named Roy living in our home. He has a terrible heartworm infestation, as a result of being kept outdoors without any heartworm prevention medication. He is now being treated for heartworms. This consists of giving him poison to kill the worms and then allowing his blood enzymes to break down the dead worms. His case is so severe that he has to get two treatments before he will be healthy and available for adoption. We have to be careful not to let him run or jump and dislodge a worm. If that happens, Roy could die from a stroke. If you have a dog, please protect him or her from heartworms and avoid this tradgedy. Roy is learning the joys of living in a house and has recently mastered climbing the stairs. We are trying to put some weight on him and build his strength through mild exercise.

I also have a very patient dog, who tolerates all of the foster dogs who cycle in and out of our house. Her name is Becca and she is a Blue Weimaraner. This is a picture taken of her by one of my former students, Bethany McGuire, who is a talented photographer(bethjmcguire@hotmail.com), see more of Bethany's Photos at http://community.webshots.com/user/bethany_joy.

This is Ellie, my step-dog (I married her Daddy!), she is learning to tolerate other dogs, strangers, and antlers. I have high hopes for her.

Butch is the newest member of our little family. He is either a Min-Pin or Manchester Terrier mix. He was our foster dog yet we fell in love with him and decided to adopt him. He constantly entertains us with his antics. His passion in life is to catch a squirrel and he practices daily!

If you would like to contact me, please click here!